Coherent X-Ray Diffraction

X-ray diffraction is a technique for studying the characteristics of matter such as macromolecules, crystals, powders, polymers, and fibers.

When x-rays pass through matter, they interact with the electrons in the atoms and become scattered. If the atoms are organized in planes (i.e., the matter is crystalline) and the distances between the atoms are of the same magnitude as the wavelength of the x-rays, then constructive and destructive interference occur and a diffraction pattern forms. Depending on the variety of matter being studied, monochromatic x-rays, pink beam (narrow band) x-rays, or white beam (wide band) x-rays can be used.

PI’s Picks:

PI suggests utilizing one of these exceptional cameras for x-ray diffraction studies:

Our compact PIXIS-XF, meanwhile, uses proprietary fiberoptic coupling to preserve the highest spatial resolution, provides high sensitivity for very faint diffracting samples, has a flexible design that allows phosphor removal for system optimization, and features a USB 2.0 data interface. Both models are supported under LINUX.

An experimental setup for coherent x-ray diffraction imaging at SPring-8, Japan, currently the most powerful x-ray source in the world. Photo courtesy of Dr. Kianwei Mia, University of California, Los Angeles.